Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor took the high road Saturday following his team’s controversial loss to Michigan.
The Broncos thought they had completed a stunning road upset over No. 16 Wolverines at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich. Western Michigan led 12-7 when Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood failed to connect on a Hail Mary throw that everyone in the building initially assumed was the final play of the contest.
Referees still left Michigan one second on the clock, despite replays showing time already hitting zero on the preceding play. Underwood ended up connecting with wide receiver JJ Buchanan for a 47-yard Michigan walk-off touchdown.
A calm Taylor spoke to reporters after the game and remained surprisingly complimentary of the game officials. He also noted that he trusted MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher to handle the appeal process on behalf of the Broncos.
“I thought that the crew tonight did a very nice job of handling multiple close calls and review situations,” Taylor said.
“At the end of the day, you don’t always control those situations. … We talk a lot about just respond regardless of what the circumstances are. We can’t control whether there’s a second left on the clock or not. We went out the first time. We defended perfectly the Hail Mary situation. I thought our guys did an excellent job.
“I know when I looked up at the clock, it was past zero before we touched it. I knew that they would review it. It was the last second of the game. Because we defended it so well, I wasn’t worried or concerned about our guys defending it a second time.”
Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor on the final play of tonight’s game: pic.twitter.com/WJEBAGHaG8
— Drew Lenard (@drew_lenardd) September 6, 2026
Taylor added that Western Michigan also benefited from a few reviews that “went our way” and called the last-second play “a good lesson” for his defense going forward.
Fans could not help but praise Taylor for the professionalism and level-headedness he showed after an otherwise tough moment for him and his program.
Western Michigan coach Lance Taylor handles this with maturity and dignity, seeming lost arts in college football.
— Dan Wetzel (@DanWetzel) September 6, 2026
At a lot of places, a TRO would have already been filed.
Congrats to the Broncos. https://t.co/9hzFCXmp0M
Lance Taylor is so much more mature than I'd ever be. https://t.co/bhdsx6Ja0m
— Andy Staples (@AndyStaples) September 6, 2026
The class and maturity that Lance Taylor displayed tonight after all of that deserves a lot of credit.
— John Fanta (@John_Fanta) September 6, 2026
W. Michigan coach Lance Taylor
— Graham Coffey (@GrahamCoffeyDC) September 6, 2026
This is a future big time coach
Take note of the focus inward. Lots of high profile coaches complain about calls or committees. It erodes culture. If you aren’t the problem you don’t control the solution
🎥 @drew_lenardd pic.twitter.com/1nqLUUSAw0
The 45-year-old head coach showed commendable poise at his press conference despite losing out on a potentially career-defining win in his fourth season at Western Michigan. Taylor at least showed the world that he was all class.
